Code Geass: The Return of Zero Companion Tales
by TwiDawnLight
Summary: A peek into the lives, centuries later, of the New Zero and the lives of their comrades and enemies. A series of stories based upon the characters of a gaia guild.
1. I Nightmare

_**I. Nightmares**_

Silence and darkness. Darkness and silence.

Everything seemed blurred together, unraveling at the seams till it was just a jumbled mess before his eyes.

He liked the silence. It was better when it was quiet because when it wasn't the others came to visit. Pulling at his hair and clothes as he stared blankly at the wall, whispering his name with honeyed voices.

"_Jaycee…"_

"**Jaycee…"**

"**J**_A_y**C**e_e_…"

"_cOMe to uS. JaYcEE."_

"**WE lOve yOU JaYcEE."**

Screams and pain ripping across his mind. Tearing tearing and then howling in his ears as the voices got louder until he cried out for them to stop and they let him be… for a time at least.

It was cold.

_s__**O**__**c**__oLd __**S**__o C__**o**__l__**D**__._

His body was shaking, trembling, dying slowly from his pain. The floor wasn't solid beneath him anymore, always moving, always speaking, whispering, hissing.

"**J**_A_y**C**e_e_…"

He didn't scream anymore. He didn't speak he didn't blink he didn't dream. He was broken.

**bR**o_K_en.

But they didn't leave no matter how broken he was. They just kept repeating on and on in his head. On and on and on and on and on and on and on and on…

"Jaycee."

A hand on his shoulder and its strange, the feeling. It's… what's that word?

Cold…

Someone pulling him close "It's alright Jaycee. It's warm now you see? I'll make sure you're warm."

Warm. That was the word he was looking for. It had been so long so long since he'd been warm. They were always there, always cold.

"Sh… It's alright Jaycee. They're not there anymore."

Had he been speaking aloud? He couldn't remember. Did he even know how to speak anymore? It had been so long…

"Come on. Let's get you out of here."

Can't move. The shadows holding on tight. Holding on and whispering his name. Again and again and again.

"Well I'll talk louder then, alright?" a breath "Jaycee! Jaaaaayyyyccceeeee!"

He can move again. Clutching onto this bright person he takes a step into the light.

* * *

><p>"…Jaycee? Jaaaaaayyyccceeee!" there's an insistent poking at his cheek and the boy cracked open one blue-gray eye, grumbling low in his throat at having been disturbed.<p>

A laugh "Oh come on now you can't fall asleep in class all the time!"

Jaycee yawned and stretched in his chair, getting stiff muscles moving again and popping joints back into place "Ugh. So tired…"

The girl laughed softly, her long blonde hair bouncing with the action "What were you dreaming about?"

The boy flicked dark pink hair out of his eyes, glancing up into the girl's violet gaze "Nothing, Hime-chan." he got to his feet and started walking "Come on we're gonna be late right?"

For his lack of an answer he was promptly hunted down by his friend and thoroughly questioned. He didn't answer, about the past or the way she seemed to shine brighter than anything else.

_Thank you, Aaralyn._


	2. II Sunset

_**The Return of Zero- Companion Tales**_

_**II. Sunset**_

"Onii-chan! Stop it!"

"Keep up, Rona-chan~."

"I'm gonna get you for that!"

"Rona! Siegfried! Play nice!"

"Yes papa."

When yet another complaint and fight erupted once more Gallagher promptly gave up and flopped back into the beach chair "It never ends does it?"

There was a warm laugh to his left and his wife, Miyako, smiled warmly at him her green eyes bright "No one ever said having children would be easy."

He took a deep breath and let out a deep, exaggerated sigh his violet gaze meeting her own "But don't they have a manual for these things?" he whined childishly "Honestly someone should give out warnings when married couples consider having children."

His wife giggled again "What's this? The great Gallagher Silens being undone by his own children? The nobility would be appalled!"

With a sly grin he leaned over so that his mouth just hovered over her own "Well then I'll just tell them that the great Goddess of Victory bore children that were too much for me to handle."

Their lips met and not two seconds later there were groans of disgust:

"Eeeeewwwww! Papa and Mama are getting mushy again!"

"Get a room already!"

The married couple broke apart and Gallagher gave his daughter and son an irritated glance "Alright. That's it!"

With a roar of triumph he leapt off his chair and charged after his children, smirking as they squealed in surprise and took off for the water, the sand flying up beneath their sandaled feet.

"EEK! Papa put me down put me down!"

"Haha he got you Rona- AGH!"

There was a loud splash as both her children were thrown into the ocean and Miyako fought hard to suppress her laughter. She nearly failed, as the two emerged looking soaked and sullen, but used her years of training as her defense against the giggles rising in her chest.

"Oh my they all get into so much trouble," she murmured softly to herself, covering her smiling mouth with a hand. She glanced up at the sunset and her smile faltered slightly as it reflected onto the ocean, turning it an ugly shade of blood red. An omen. Her grip tightened slightly on the arms of her chair and suddenly the laughter and playfulness of her family seemed distant as the silence came to surround her thoughts.

Tensions were rising no doubt about that. Suddenly there had been a security increase in the Britannians around their home. It wasn't unusual, after all her husband was Britannian, but they were in peaceful times were they not? There was no reason for fighting, no reason for suffering as in that great war so many years ago… Yet here was an omen she could not fail to remember.

'_Kami-sama. Will blood truly be spilled? Is our time of peace at last coming to an end?'_

Her grandmother had often repeated a Britannian saying '_Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it._' Was it possible that now, after all this time-?

"Nooooo no no no no no no no no no! Don't you even- GWAH!"

There was an almighty splash as Gallagher fell into the ocean. His children climbed atop his prone form and pumped their fists into the air proclaiming in proud voices:

"We've conquered the giant!"

"All hail Lord and Lady Sumeragi!"

There was a groan and Gallagher gave his wife a helpless look "Honey help me…"

Her dark thoughts cast aside, she wasted no time leaping to her feet and diving into the water, tackling her son and daughter down with her "Here comes the Goddess of Victory!"

There were complaints and much splashing before about a half hour later Miyako was lying with her family on the sand of the beach, staring up into the now night sky. A warm hand slipped into her own and she glanced to her right, gazing into the violet eyes of her husband and returning his kind smile. She closed her eyes and allowed herself the peace of the moment, the feeling of her husband at her side and her daughter and son lying comfortably on her stomach. What would the future bring? She wasn't sure, but she would do anything to protect this. This love.


End file.
